ARE YOU AN ASSET OR A LIABILITY IN OUR COMMUNITY

Are you an Asset or a Liability in Our Community?

This is the question you must ask yourself:  Are you an asset or a liability in our community?  By definition, an asset is a useful and desirable thing or quality.  What does an asset in our community look like?  An asset is useful – in other words, are you useful in the community?  Do you attend community meetings?  Are you aware of happenings in this community and are you useful in protecting and maintaining the quality of life in our community?  An asset is desirable – are you a desirable neighbor?  Are you visible or do you just go into your house and hope that nothing goes wrong?  Do you know your neighbors?  Are you the neighbor that someone wants to live next to? 

By definition, a liability is something disadvantageous (unfavorable; detrimental).   What does a liability look like?  Someone who is a liability engages in activity that is not favorable to others – loud, foul language, obnoxious, constant traffic in and out of the house, unmaintained properties which then brings down the property value of neighbors, unsupervised minors and complete lack of regard for the benefit of the neighborhood. 

As a people trying to preserve this historical community, we need to be actively involved.  The people who care nothing about this neighborhood – those using reckless violence to disrupt peace- are aggressively pursuing our neighborhood.  We cannot be passive when others are threatening our right to live in a peaceful neighborhood.  During the civil rights movement, people literally risked their lives for justice and peace.  I implore you to take the same type of attitude when it comes to preserving Chatham.  Be involved, get involved and stay involved, if not you, then who? “If you ain’t real about it don’t talk” and don’t complain about the many problems that are affecting our community because all you are doing is creating background noise that no one can hear. The City of Chicago responds to organized noise, in other words, the squeaky wheel gets the oil. The responsibility is ours and a few people should not and cannot continue to carry the load for everyone.  What would’ve happened during the Montgomery Bus Boycott if people, thousands of people, did not get involved, did not walk for over a year – how would history be different?  We are at a crossroads here in Chatham and we cannot afford to be passive and full of excuses. 

Are you an asset or a liability in our community? 

The Struggle Continues…………………….

For His Kingdom,                                                                     Psalm 47:7, KJV.

Rev. Dr. Marc A. Robertson